2012 Vermont elections explained

Vermont's 2012 general elections were held on November 6, 2012. Primary elections were held on August 28, 2012.

Governor

See main article: 2012 Vermont gubernatorial election.

See also: 2012 United States gubernatorial elections.

Incumbent Democratic Governor Peter Shumlin (since 2011) ran for re-election.^[1]

Lieutenant governor

Republican incumbent Phil Scott, who has held the position of Lieutenant Governor (since 2011) ran for re-election to a second term.^[2]

Cassandra Gekas, the former health care advocate for the Vermont Public Interest Research Group (VPIRG), sought the Democratic nomination to challenge Scott.^[3]

Election Name:	2012 Vermont lieutenant gubernatorial election
Country:	Vermont
Type:	presidential
Ongoing:	no
Previous Election:	2010 Vermont lieutenant gubernatorial election
Previous Year:	2010
Next Election:	2014 Vermont lieutenant gubernatorial election
Next Year:	2014
Election Date:	November 4, 2012
Image1:	File:Phil Scott.jpg
Nominee1:	Phil Scott
Party1:	Vermont Republican Party
Popular Vote1:	162,787
Percentage1:	57.1%
Nominee2:	Cassandra Gekas
Party2:	Vermont Democratic Party
Popular Vote2:	115,015
Percentage2:	40.4%
Map Size:	210px
Lieutenant Governor
Before Election:	Phil Scott
Before Party:	Vermont Republican Party
After Election:	Phil Scott
After Party:	Vermont Republican Party

Republican primary

Incumbent Phil Scott was unopposed in the Republican primary.

Democratic primary

Cassandra Gekas was unopposed for the nomination.

Liberty Union

Ben Mitchell was unopposed for the nomination.

General election

Candidates

• Ben Mitchell (LU)
• Cassandra Gekas (D)
• Phil Scott (R)

Results

Secretary of State

Democratic incumbent Jim Condos, who has held the position of Secretary of State of Vermont since 2011, is currently running unopposed in the primary as well as the general elections. Condos has also been nominated by the Progressive Party.

Liberty Union Party candidate Mary Alice Herbert was the sole declared candidate opposing Condos. She declined to debate Condos.^{[4] [2]}

Condos received 86.6% of the votes cast for the office of SoS.

Treasurer

Democratic incumbent Beth Pearce, who was appointed to the position of Vermont State Treasurer in 2011, was elected to her first full term.^[2]

Wendy Wilton, the Rutland City Treasurer and former State Representative, was the Republican nominee.^[2] Don Schramm, a retired businessman, was the Progressive nominee for the third election in a row.^[5]

Attorney general

Incumbent William Sorrell, who had held the position of Vermont Attorney General since 1997, ran for re-election and defeated T. J. Donovan for the Democratic nomination.^[6]

Democratic primary results:^[6]

Sorrell, 21,124 (50.8%)

Donovan, 20,410 (49.1%)

For the general election, Jack McMullen, a businessman who ran for the U.S. Senate in 1998 and 2004, was the Republican nominee.^[2] Ed Stanak, a retired state employee and former president of the Vermont State Employees Union, was the Progressive candidate.^[4] Rosemarie Jackowski was on the ballot as the nominee of the Liberty Union Party.^[6]

In the general election, Sorrell won another term.^[6] The results were:^[6]

Sorrell, 164,441 (57.9%)

McMullen, 94,588 (33.3%)

Stanak, 15,629 (5.5%)

Jackowski, 8,533 (3.0%)

Write-in, 588 (0.2%)

Auditor

Election Name:	Vermont Auditor of Accounts,2012
Country:	Vermont
Type:	presidential
Ongoing:	Yes
Previous Election:	2010 Vermont Auditor election
Previous Year:	2010
Next Election:	2014 Vermont Auditor election
Next Year:	2014
Election Date:	November 6, 2012
Image1:	File:Doug Hoffer (cropped).png
Nominee1:	Doug Hoffer
Party1:	Vermont Democratic Party
Popular Vote1:	140,805
Percentage1:	51.3%
Nominee2:	Vincent Illuzzi
Party2:	Vermont Republican Party
Popular Vote2:	123,806
Percentage2:	45.1%
Map Size:	210px
Auditor
Before Election:	Thomas M. Salmon
Before Party:	Vermont Republican Party
After Election:	Doug Hoffer
After Party:	Vermont Democratic Party

On May 18, 2012, incumbent Auditor Thomas M. Salmon announced he would not be running for re-election.

Republican primary

Candidates

• Vincent Illuzzi, Essex/Orleans State Senate

Results

Democratic primary

Candidates

• Doug Hoffer, self-employed policy analyst, nominee for Auditor in 2010

Results

General Election

Candidates

• Doug Hoffer (D/P)
• Vincent Illuzzi (R)
• Jerry Levy (LU)

Results

General Assembly

State Senate

All 30 members of the Vermont Senate are up for election. The state Senate currently consists of 20 Democrats, 8 Republicans, and 2 Progressives (who caucus with the Democratic majority).

Open seats

• Chittenden: Democratic incumbent Hinda Miller retired.^[7]
• Essex-Orleans: Republican incumbent Vincent Illuzzi is running for state auditor.
• Franklin: Republican incumbent Randy Brock is running for governor.^[8] Democratic incumbent Sara Kittell retired.^[9]

State House of Representatives

All 150 members of the Vermont House of Representatives are up for election. The state House currently consists of 94 Democrats, 48 Republicans, 5 Progressives (who caucus with the Democratic majority), and 3 Independents (who also caucus with the Democratic majority).

Open seats

• Caledonia-2: Democratic incumbent and House Majority Leader Lucy Leriche retired.
• Caledonia-4: Republican incumbent Howard Crawford retired.^[10]
• Chittenden-6-3 (Chittenden-3-3 prior to redistricting): Democratic incumbent Jason Lorber retired.^[11]
• Chittenden-6-6: This is a new seat, with no incumbent.
• Chittenden-6-7 (Chittenden-3-6 prior to redistricting): Democratic incumbent Kenneth Atkins retired.
• Chittenden-7-4 (Chittenden-3-9 prior to redistricting): Democratic incumbent Bert Munger retired.
• Essex-Caledonia: Republican incumbent Janice L. Peaslee retired.^[12]
• Franklin-2 (Franklin-1 prior to redistricting): Democratic incumbent Gary Gilbert retired.
• Franklin-3-1 (Franklin-3 prior to redistricting): Republican incumbent Dustin Allard Degree is seeking a state Senate seat.^[13]
• Franklin-5 (Franklin-6 prior to redistricting): Republican incumbent Norman H. McAllister is seeking a state Senate seat.
• Franklin-6 (Franklin-2 prior to redistricting): Democratic incumbent Richard Howrigan retired.
• Lamoille-3 (Lamoille-4 prior to redistricting): Republican incumbent Adam Howard retired.
• Orleans-1: Republican incumbent Robert Lewis is seeking a state Senate seat.^[14]
• Rutland-6 (Rutland-7 prior to redistricting): Republican incumbent Joe Acinapura retired.
• Windham-2-3 (Windham-3-3 prior to redistricting): Progressive incumbent Sarah Edwards retired.^[15]
• Windham-Bennington-Windsor-1: Republican incumbent Oliver Olsen retired.
• Windsor-2: Democratic incumbent Ernest Shand retired.^[16]
• Windsor-4-2 (Windsor-6-2 prior to redistricting): Democratic incumbent Charles Bohi retired.^[17]

External links

• Elections & Campaign Finance Division at the Vermont Secretary of State
• Vermont at Ballotpedia
• Vermont 2012 campaign finance data from OpenSecrets
• Vermont Congressional Races in 2012 campaign finance data from OpenSecrets
• Outside spending at the Sunlight Foundation

Notes and References

1. Web site: Shumlin Announces His Re-election Bid. June 12, 2012. June 25, 2012. Vermont Public Radio.
2. Web site: Windham County to see primary races on Aug. 28. June 20, 2012. June 25, 2012. The Commons. Olga. Peters.
3. Web site: Vermont lieutenant gubernatorial election, 2012.
4. Web site: And they're off: Candidates file for races. June 14, 2012. June 25, 2012. VTDigger.org. Taylor. Dobbs.
5. Web site: Vermont Progressives building a slate of candidates. May 16, 2012. June 25, 2012. The Burlington Free Press. Terri. Hallenbeck.
6. Web site: Vermont Attorney General election, 2012 . Ballotpedia . Lucy Burns Institute . Middleton, WI . December 16, 2020.
7. Web site: Trail Tidbits: House leader leaves; Zuckerman shoots for Senate; Tillinghast challenges MacDonald in primary. June 5, 2012. June 25, 2012. VTDigger.org. Taylor. Dobbs.
8. Web site: Vermont GOP backs Brock for 2012 gubernatorial bid. December 7, 2011. June 25, 2012. VTDigger.org. Anne. Galloway.
9. Web site: Franklin County Senate race features boatloads of experience. May 14, 2012. June 25, 2012. The Burlington Free Press. Terri. Hallenbeck.
10. Web site: Leaving the Golden Dome: State reps who won't be back. May 8, 2012. June 25, 2012. VTDigger.org. Carl. Etnier.
11. Web site: Burlington State Rep. and Former Mayoral Candidate Jason Lorber Will Not Seek Reelection. June 8, 2012. June 25, 2012. Seven Days. Paul. Heintz.
12. Web site: Rep. Janice Peaslee will not run for a 13th term. May 23, 2012. June 25, 2012. Coos County Democrat. Edith. Tucker.
13. Web site: Rep. Dustin Allard Degree announces state Senate bid. June 15, 2012. June 25, 2012. VTDigger.org.
14. Web site: Illuzzi to run for auditor. June 12, 2012. June 25, 2012. The Burlington Free Press. Terri. Hallenbeck.
15. Web site: Rep. Edwards not seeking re-election to Vermont House. April 9, 2012. June 25, 2012. The Burlington Free Press. Terri. Hallenbeck.
16. Web site: State Rep. Shand retires after 12 years of service. June 14, 2012. June 25, 2012. Green Mountain Outlook. Louis. Varricchio. https://web.archive.org/web/20160304034434/http://www.gmoutlook.com/news/2012/jun/15/state-rep-shand-retires-after-12-years-service/. March 4, 2016. dead.
17. Web site: Rep. Charles Bohi: Montpelier Report #18. https://archive.today/20130416053902/http://www.vthouse.org/blog/rep-charles-bohi-montpelier-report-18. dead. April 16, 2013. May 9, 2012. June 25, 2012. Vermont Democratic House Campaign. Charles. Bohi.